E3 2012: Need For Speed: Most Wanted Hands-On

Criterion is back again with another entry in the Need For Speed franchise. Famous for their work on the Burnout Franchise. They moved onto make the critically acclaimed Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit. Now they’re hoping to step things up again, and they’ve put quite the effort into their new racing entry. We spent some time with it, so let’s walk you through what’s new.

They put is all in an online race. There were eight of us in, and we were in an open world. The gameplay consisted of us meeting up at special locations to begin events. However, the interesting thing is the game keeps track of you and your friends to determine who is “Most Wanted”. It takes into account various criteria from events, to taking out billboards, to taking out other players. That’s right, Take Outs are back. It seems Criterion borrowed a page from their Burnout series, and now anytime, anywhere, you can take out other players for points.

Beyond that, the events available to you are quite varied. You have the obvious things like racing, with the added twist of take outs- Teams racing as well, where you’re overall score determines the winners. However, there’s quirky challenges, like who can make the highest jump over a freeway overpass… All of this contributing to competition with your friends for who is the “most wanted”.

The game is visually impressive as well, with the kinds of visuals you’d expect of a AAA racer. Not only that, but since this is an arcade racer, the driving is extremely accessible. So you can feel free to use that Lambo you’ve earned without a fear of terrible handling. Drifting is as easy as knowing when to hit the brakes. It makes for a fun and simple experience. It’s definitely worth checking out if you’re a fan of Criterions past offerings, or just a fan of Arcade racers in general.